Page 54 of Bittersweet

“No matter how hurt I was, I couldn’t get rid of those gifts you sent me. I hid them, tucked away in the closet, out of sight. Kind of like my feelings for you, I guess. Hoping, maybe one day, I’d be able to get them out and use them. Hoping the words you wrote might actually be true.”

“They were. They are. My love for you has never faded. I know I messed things up before, but I want to make it right. I want to be with you. Forever.”

A tear slipped down Harper’s cheek, and she closed her eyes and sighed.

Logan’s eyes roamed her lovely face, taking in her smooth skin, rosy cheeks, and full lips. He was about two seconds away from leaning in to kiss her when her eyelids opened again. And he saw something different behind her eyes.

“Will you stay here with me tonight?” she whispered as she planted a soft kiss on his cheek.

Logan’s heart jumped from zero to sixty in less than a second as she moved her lips to his neck, placing soft kisses from under his ear to the dip in his throat. Her hands moved under the edge of his T-shirt, fingertips skimming along his sides, and she tried to push it up.

He reached down and stilled her hands. “I thought you wanted to wait until marriage.” He barely managed a whisper.

“I want to show you how much I still love you.”

His heart flipped at her admission. He wanted nothing more than to be with Harper in every way, but he knew her. He knew this was not what she wanted, but what she thought he wanted. “We don’t have to sleep together for me to feel your love.”

She looked up at him, shy and unsure. “Don’t you want me?”

“Oh, sweetheart, you have no idea how much I want you right now. But I know you, Harper. This isn’t what you want.”

Her gaze shifted to the lamp on her nightstand.

“Don’t sacrifice your morals to prove a point that doesn’t need proving.”

He lifted her chin to get her to look at him again. “You love me, and I love you. That’s good enough for me.”

The corners of her mouth curved up in the sweetest little smile.

“For now.” He winked.

“Will you just hold me then? I don’t want to be alone after the day I’ve had.”

Logan kissed her forehead then bent to wrap his arms under her legs, lifting her up like he was carrying her over a threshold.

She let out a surprised shriek and started laughing. “Put me down!” She kept her voice at a loud whisper.

He kicked the covers of her bed back and lowered her onto it, climbing in next to her. His arm lay across her pillow as she snuggled against him, resting her head on his chest. Her body curved into his, and they wound their legs together.

“Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea,” he whispered as his hand slid along her side and over her hip.

Harper rolled her body away, giving them some space. “So, Naya’s getting out early. Let’s talk about that.”

That successfully doused the flames.

“What’s going to happen now?” Harper asked. “Will she get to see Kayla?”

Logan stared up at the ceiling and let out a breath. “I would never keep her from seeing her daughter.”

“Can she get custody?”

“I have sole custody right now. The lawyer said it’s usually a case-by-case basis. If she gets out and can prove she has a stable home and job and has changed for good, then the case can be revisited in the future. But I think for now, the custody ruling will stand.”

“So you said it’s been a couple years since you took Kayla to see her mom? Does she remember her at all? Because the character she showed me on her game reminded me of Jennifer Lopez.”

“She only knows her from a photograph she sent with a letter once. And Naya does look a little like J. Lo.”

Harper’s eyes widened. “So, what, she’s going to come over here and visit or you’ll go there or what?”

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